The following shelter list has been designed to help you in two very different ways.

The most recognized, is if you are looking to adopt a new family member.

The other is not so known. You would also want to use such a list in case your dog should ever get lost. Knowing exactly which shelter to call can make a major difference in finding your lost pet.

Some city’s shelters are not as obvious, for example, the Orange County Humane Society in Huntington Beach. This shelter doesn’t actually serve the residents of Huntington Beach but serve the cities of Costa Mesa and Westminster. Huntington Beach residents actually need to contact the Orange County Animal Care Center in Orange when checking to see if their pet was picked up in Huntington Beach and then taken to the City of Orange.

It’s important to note when a dog escapes he/she can cover a lot of ground. Therefore, a good rule of thumb is to always contact the shelter that serves your city as well as your neighboring cities. Know that simply a description of your lost pet over the phone may not always work. Be prepared to drive to each shelter so that you can check for yourself.

ALWAYS have the most updated license and ID tags on your pet. This will definitely increase your dog’s chances of returning home safely to you.

IRVINE ANIMAL CARE SHELTER 6443 Oak Canyon Rd., Irvine, CA, 92620 (949) 724-7741 Cities served: Irvine

LAGUNA BEACH CITY ANIMAL CONTROL 20612 Laguna Canyon Rd., Laguna Beach, CA92651 (949) 497-3552 Visit Website Cities served: Laguna Beach

SPCALA / LONG BEACH SHELTER 7700 E. Spring St., Long Beach, CA 90815 (562) 570-7722 (Adoptions) (562) 570-PETS (Animal Control) Cities served: Long Beach, Signal Hill, Cerritos, & Los Alamitos

MISSION VIEJO ANIMAL CONTROL 28095 Hillcrest, Mission Viejo, CA 92692 (949) 470-3045 Cities served: Mission Viejo & Laguna Niguel

NEWPORT BEACH SHELTER 2075 Newport Blvd., Suite 112, Costa Mesa, CA 92606 (949) 722-8301 Cities served: Newport Beach

ORANGE COUNTY ANIMAL CARE CENTER 561 City Drive South, Orange, CA 92866 (714) 935-6848 Visit Website Cities served: Anaheim, Brea, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Laguna Hills, Lake Forest, LaPalma, Los Alamitos, Orange, Placentia, San Juan Capistrano, Stanton, Tustin, Villa Park & Yorba Linda

*ORANGE COUNTY HUMANE SOCIETY 21632 Newland Street, Huntington Beach, CA 92646 (714) 536-8480 Cities served: Costa Mesa & Westminster (*Plus owner relinquish program for Orange County)

SAN CLEMENTE ANIMAL SHELTER 221 Avenida Fabricante, San Clemente, CA 92672 (949) 492-1617 Cities served: San Clemente & Dana Point

SEAL BEACH ANIMAL CARE CENTER 1700 Aldolpho Lopez Drive. Seal Beach, CA 90740 (562) 430-4993 Visit Website Cities served: Seal Beach